I’ll net it out before I get into the long-winded details:
– If you’re looking to fill big space with big sound, go with the Magnifi Max. Not that the Mini is bad, it’s just not as great
– Get the SR2 surround speakers for the rear
Okay now the details:
The Magnifi Mini AX sounds great, don’t get me wrong. It will definitely fill a smaller room with great sound. But, there’s only so much you can expect from a 14.5″ wide bar. The sound is very much concentrated where the bar is versus being more dispersed for a “surround sound” experience. The sound settings do compensate a bit, with the 3D being the most immersive in my opinion.
The reason for my Mini AX purchase as a change in TV configuration. I previously had the Magnifi Max SR (now discontinued) but could no longer have the 43″ wide bar sitting atop my hutch. Instead, I needed the smaller Mini bar to tuck into a shelf underneath.
So, I’m able to compare both systems.
There’s no way to expect the Mini to sound as good as the Max. The Max SR has 7 drivers and is 43″ wide which provides a true surround experience even without the rear speakers (which did come with the Max SR but not the Mini AX). The Max’s midrange and highs are warmer as well.
My viewing room is 16 deep and 26 feet wide (open concept floor plan). The Mini just can’t fill that kind of space where the Max did a pretty good job.
Because I ordered the SR2 rear speakers separately from the Mini AX system, the SR2 speakers arrived a day later. This gave me an opportunity to listen to the Mini AX without the rears, which was a little disappointing. To be fair, I’m used to the Max SR WITH the rear speakers.
When I paired up the SR2 speakers, the Mini AX really came to life. The sound quality is still great, just not as great as the Max (which is understandable given the size and price differences).
One of the biggest complaints with the Max SR was lag and loss of connection. The Mini is 1000 times better as it relates to the lag. I’m not going to say there is no lag, but it’s a second or two from when the source is turned on until you hear sound versus 5-10 with the Max SR. The lag is the same whether I’m using the Optical input or the ARC input. The Max SR would randomly drop the source as well. It seems they’ve sorted this out over the past couple of years since the Max SR was manufactured.

Incredible sound. I’m using it for music and gaming on a Windows 11 machine.
Unfortunately, Windows 11 won’t run Atmos through DisplayPort. If you want Dolby Access to provide the signal you can only use HDMI. However, you can’t connect it directly to HDMI on Magnifi Mini AX. So you need to use an audio extractor. I ended up using an Arcana VRR that splits off the eARC. Sadly, this sets you back nearly $400.
If Polk Audio is reading this, gamers have been looking for a tiny sound bar that does what this can but they aren’t going to want to cough up another $400 for an audio extractor.
If this is technologically possible, advice to make the next revision a hit is to do the following:
Magnifi Mini AX v2 will have an HDMI 2.1 pass-through that you can connect your PC HDMI into and HDMI out that goes to your monitor so the GPU’s will recognize the monitor and the Magnifi Mini AX v2 will extract audio and monitor will still be able to keep whatever adaptive sync technology they support (VRR/G-Sync/FreeSync).
Create that and you’ll have the best gaming soundbar in the market.

I’ve had my eyes on this tiny soundbar for a while now and after finally purchasing let me tell you it did not disappoint. It’s nice and compact but had BIG sound. Dialog is excellent and the sub puts in work. I got a great deal on an open box unit. I recommend it 100%!

Excellent sound compact easy to use perfect options hdmi arc for everything plugged into tv through hdmi and I picked this one because i can connect my record player to it also.